I'm intrigued by chain tensioners, and I'm considering them on my Mark V. However. I've gathered that NJS frames are spaced to accomodate the use of chain tensioners. Can one use chain tensioners on frames that do not have specific NJS rear dropout spacing? Are there any detrimental effects from using chain tensioners?

yea you can still use them. if your drop outs are too wide MKS makes some beefier ones (i think 9mm).. If those still don't fit, you can dremel off a side. Theres also more "techy" looking ones that would work. Only downside I can think of to using chain tensioners is it takes longer to get your wheel off when you need to change a flat.

You don't have to worry about the extra 3 mm spacing that many keirin frames now put into their rear spacing to accommodate tugs. Just let the flat part of the tug sit on the outside, directly under the track nut. It isn't quite as non-slippable as having that part on the inside, but you'd only see the difference in UCI-level sprinting or kilo.

That being said, the easier solution is to spread the stay ends a hair. You can do it with your bare hands on most bikes (try it in very small increments because you'd be surprised how much you can over-spread it). If you can't budget it that way, grab a car tire jack and use it instead. Jack it open just a bit and leave it for an hour. You'll find the metal retains a bit of a memory of its new position. Again, work in small doses.

ther are two type of devices that fall into the category of chain tensioners:
1. ones that secure the rear axle in place
2. ones that act on the chain itself, applying pressure of some sort to take the slack out of the chain (like a derailleur - surly's tensioner is a good example of this)

ther are two type of devices that fall into the category of chain tensioners:
1. ones that secure the rear axle in place
2. ones that act on the chain itself, applying pressure of some sort to take the slack out of the chain (like a derailleur - surly's tensioner is a good example of this)